


Off Limits

by unseenbox



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Post-Timeskip | War Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 04:54:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22061374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unseenbox/pseuds/unseenbox
Summary: The only downside to dating Flayn? Trying to avoid her overprotective big brother.
Relationships: Ferdinand von Aegir/Flayn
Comments: 8
Kudos: 66





	Off Limits

**Author's Note:**

> Technically, this fic is set on the Azure Moon Route, but there aren't any spoilers for events *on* the route, and really, any non-CF route works.

The Cathedral would be a better place for meetings like these, Ferdinand thought. The ruined temple was much more secluded than it used to be, and there might have even been a few good hiding places among the rubble, cracked tiles, and turned over pews. Unfortunately, their nominal leader Dimitri had taken to skulking about the place, and like most, Ferdinand decided to give him a wide berth. So, the fishing pond it was. He's grown fond of it, the way the fish haven't seemed to have change much in the last five years, as well as the way sunlight reflected off the water. When it caught Flayn's hair, he swore that it sparkled. 

"It is very calming, is it not? Watching the fish swim in their little circles and hoping one of them decides to nibble on the bait." Flayn held a fishing pole in her hand, and Ferdinand helped her with it, hand braced on the handle. Their fingers overlapped, here and there, her ring over his middle, a small touch so light and delicate. He flushed, warm even where she wasn't pressed near him. Her other hand rested on his shoulder, helping her keep her balance on the pier, or at least, that's the excuse she decided to go with.

"I see! Is there no other strategy to catching the fish, besides being quiet and waiting?" He pondered this for a moment, free hand scuffing at his chin in thought. "Fishing is not usually considered a noble pursuit, but I suspect it is to their detriment. Many nobles could stand to learn something of the patience it must require." He didn't know if he should still include himself as one of them, if he would have any sort of title or claim when this war was over, but that was a worry for another time, one that he wasn't spending so enjoyably.

"Oh, I am certain there is a strategy to it. Different fish congregate at different times, so if there is one you are desiring, perhaps for a tasty breakfast, you must cast the line at the proper time!" Flayn sounded like a bell when she speaks, and if Ferdinand looked down, he could see her smile around a laugh. "But… I find that I like being thought of as very patient. You must call me that again." Her hand squeezed at his shoulder and left a vague impression in the fabric.

Ferdinand found himself nodding, still unable to combat his blushing or the way his voice shook a little. "If that is what you wish, I would gladly call you patient as often as you like." 

Flayn waggled the fishing pole back and forth as she laughed. "Perhaps while waiting for the fish to fry?"

"Of course!" Ferdinand glanced down at the empty basket next to him. "But I believe it will help to have caught a few fish of our own before we head into the kitchens." 

Flayn hummed thoughtfully, looking at the surface of the pond. "They are being quite shy today, it seems. But the fish do not matter as much as the memories made while trying to catch them."

"And I suppose that the more we fish, the more memories there will be to choose from?" 

"I still remember how my mother would--"

Flayn stiffened mid-thought, dropping the fishing pole so quickly that Ferdinand bobbled it to the deck. "Quick, he's coming! Hide!" 

Ferdinand whirled around, trying to see where the he in question might be coming from, but in the space of that moment, Flayn evidently thought he was taking too long and shoved at his shoulder, giving him a surprisingly strong push and plunging him into the pond. Cold water splashed up everywhere, even catching Flayn, and white bubbles flooded his vision as he tried to surface, weighed down by all his finery. When he managed to clear his head out from the water, he opened his mouth to, politely, ask what Flayn was thinking, but then he saw a robed figure with a dark green head of hair approaching from the west and ducked under the pier, holding onto one of the supports and looking up through gaps in the deck.

"Flayn! There you are. I've been looking all over for you!" Seteth's boots clomped as he jogged onto the pier, doubling over as he panted for breath. 

"Is something the matter?" Flayn clasped her hands together, trying to look as innocent as possible.

Seteth recovered and made to nudge Flayn by the shoulders and usher her away. "It isn't safe to stand out here anymore, who knows how rotten the wood might have gotten over all these years." 

"Brother, you are being quite silly. These planks have lasted this long, they will presumably hold for a few moments more." Still, she let herself be nudged away from the head of the pier.

"Indulge me, please. I don't want to see you taking a spill into the pond when it's still so icy…"

Flayn dug in her heels. "It is not so chilly anymore, and the fish have started to gather again, and even so, I am capable of swimming!"

Seteth gazed out over the pond's surface and Ferdinand ducked even further back under the deck. Ferdinand covered his mouth and hoped. "Was… there someone else out here with you? I could have sworn…"

"What?!" Flayn nearly jumped with shock, arms spread wide. "No, no, of course not. I was… merely fishing by myself, hoping to catch some lunch."

Seteth sighed, put-upon. From his view, Ferdinand could see how he braced his forehead with his hand. "I do wish you would be more honest with me."

"I promise, I was here by myself. And--" Flayn swallowed, rubbing her hands together. "Perhaps you were right about the stability of this pier, and I shall take my leave now." She hurried toward the monastery grounds, leaving the fishing pole behind in her haste.

Seteth cast one last glance back at the pond before he took off after her, with a cry of, "Flayn, wait! Come back!" 

Ferdinand took a moment to catch his breath, afraid that he would turn back around before going very far. But as the moment stretched and the footsteps receded, Ferdinand carefully swum over to the shoreline and pushed himself back up onto dry land. He wrung his hair out, which seemed to do little for the water and small ice shards clinging to it, and he supposed that he must find a way to dry his clothes soon, too. He understood completely, what Flayn mentioned earlier about memories: he doubted that he would forget this fishing trip any time soon.

One warm bath and a change of clothes later, there was a knock on the door and Flayn let herself into his quarters. Ferdinand softly closed the door behind her, clearing off space on his desk as she marched inside. She clasped her hands together, her head bowed, and brows drawn tight.

Ferdinand frowned. He moved toward her, arms out. He did not want to crowd her in, should she not want comforting, but he longed to hold her and remove the lines of worry from her face. “I do not like seeing you so distressed. Is there anything—” 

Flayn launched herself at him. Her arms gripped tight around his midsection, and he felt her head rest against his shoulder. “I am very sorry for pushing you into the pond! I could not think of anything else to do, and I was certain he would discover us--” 

Ferdinand worked up the nerve to settle a hand in her hair, near the crown of her head. “Please, do not blame yourself too harshly. I was quite thoroughly soaked, but it only took a good bath and a change of clothes to right it.” He pulled back from the embrace so that he could see her face more clearly and gave a wobbly smile. “I understand why you shoved me, and, perhaps if I had noticed him approaching sooner, you would not have needed to take such an action.”

Flayn brushed a lock of his hair aside. Her lips turned in a frown as she searched his eyes for some sort of answer. “You are certain you are not injured? I heard the water was quite cold…” 

“Perhaps a bruise here or there, but nothing that feels permanent or painful, I promise. I have had worse from the horses.” 

Flayn finally lit up into a smile, eyes catching with it. She did not seem to feel an urge to leave the circle of his arms, only leaning back. “Do the horses often give you difficulty?”

“They are very easily frightened, so one must take care to keep calm or they may throw you off to escape some imagined danger. I took a few bad falls, when I was first learning to ride, many years ago. The trainers wanted me to…,” he swallowed around a lump in his throat, “to whip them, to make them go faster.” His eyes felt very tired, suddenly. He blinked, trying to clear out the dirt that must be irritating them. “So, I do not begrudge the horses, for showing their displeasure with me.”

“How terrible, to hurt the creatures entrusted in their care, and to ask you to do the same! Tell me, are these trainers still employed?"

“No, thankfully, I had them all let go as I took on my father’s household,” Ferdinand placated.

Flayn nodded, satisfied. She rubbed a soothing hand along his back. It left brightness in its wake, and he found himself smiling. “And the horses, were they…?”

“I did what I could to ensure their proper care. I remember an old mare that I would take for rides in the morning, and she seemed to have the gentlest expression while I cleaned the dirt out from her hooves.” Ferdinand blushed. “It may not seem a very dignified task, but it was essential, and I was proud to help keep her from being injured.”

“I was not aware that dirt posed such a hazard! I shall have to give my compliments to the stable hands when I see them next!” She clapped her hands together, gaze bright and excited. 

“Indeed! They do such marvelous work keeping our cavalry well-equipped and our horses fed.”

“I wonder, what do horses usually eat? Certainly they are not restricted to blades of grass?” Flayn took a step back and broke his loose hold. She cast her gaze around his room, refusing to settle on just one area. In truth, his desk was still covered in a thin layer of dust and the bed had gained a few lumps over the years, but he’d done what little he could to make his old room feel more lived in. 

“Mine happens to be quite fond of carrots,” Ferdinand chipped in. 

Flayn’s eyes went wide. “We never ate lunch! Or caught any fish, for that matter. Would you like to accompany me to the dining hall?” She extended her hand, palm up, and Ferdinand reached out to take it.

“I would be honored.” He held her hand with great care. As he jiggled the door handle, he heard footsteps in the hallway, clacking against the stone. “Someone is coming this way!”

Flayn jumped. “What do we do?! I cannot be seen in here—”

“Please, stay in here for just a moment, and I will see what they want. It may not be as much trouble as we think,” Ferdinand urged. Flayn stood stock still for a moment, then nodded, once, sharp.

“Agreed. But you must be careful, Ferdinand.” 

“I promise, I will do nothing that could endanger you. Or myself, for that matter.” A softness shone in her eyes, but he did not know what it could possibly mean. He bid her to sit down at his desk, careful not to hold her hand too tightly. “I will be back as soon as I can manage.” He stood in the doorway, looked back for just one moment, then took a deep breath and shut the door behind him with a soft click.

It was Seteth. 

“Oh. Ferdinand, it’s you.” His arms crossed. His voice sounded so icy that it could cause a fried egg to freeze. “Entertaining a guest, were you?” 

Ferdinand gulped. He pushed up against the door behind him. “Yes, I was… just speaking with a friend of mine, we were about to get lunch--”

“I see. A good friend of yours, is she?”

For a moment, Ferdinand had the wild idea of denying everything. She? Who is she? Why, there was no girl in his room at all! But that felt wrong to him, somehow. Flayn didn’t deserve to be denied. So, he caught what little of his breath he could and said, “Yes, she is.”

“Flayn truly is a very special girl. Anyone would be honored to know her.” The odd note of pride in his voice jarred with the coldness of his stare.

“I admit, I am very fond of her.” 

“I thought as much. Then, come with me. I have something I must discuss with you.” He turned on his heels, expecting him to follow. Ferdinand did so without question, sparing one last glance back at his door as he left, trailing behind Seteth as if he were on his way to an execution. Eventually, the church official came to a stop at the corner of the dormitories on the first floor. Seteth turned to face him, arms still crossed, sharply frowning.

“Let me make one thing perfectly clear: Flayn is not to be toyed with. I will not allow you to worm your way into her heart only to leave it shattered. Tell me, do you intend to marry her?”

Ferdinand blushed, hot. “No, I would not---

“To be tied down, yes, I understand. Young boys can be so fickle.”

“No! That is—that is not what I meant, only—” He tried to catch his breath and failed, frustrated tears catching at the corner of his eyes. “I do not know if marriage is something that she would want, and I would hate to force her into one.” 

“I find that difficult to believe. You are merely sewing your oats. Courting my darling Flayn simply because you can, without caring what will happen when this relationship of yours runs its course, the way all such romances do!” His voice echoed off the stone walls.

Ferdinand winced, shot through. “I do not understand. Is it that you want me to stay with her? I do not think I would have any difficulty--”

“It is very simple. Find someone else to practice your romantic notions on, if you wish, but you will leave my sister out of them. Is that clear?” 

Birds chirped. Ferdinand stood silent, a vast chasm before him. He took a breath, several of them, to relieve some of the pain in his chest. Seteth gazed expectantly down at him. The stone wall behind him dug into his coat. His hands were shaking, so he tried to stop them, to no avail. He thought of a few ideas in a panicked flash, none of them very good. Fleeing the scene would do no good. A hole in the ground was unlikely to swallow him up. But he knew in his heart what his answer would be, so he gave it.

“I do not think I can do that.”

Seteth scoffed. “Is there a reason why not?”

Ferdinand boggled. “I need a reason beyond that I am very fond of her?”

“Not at all, as you are going to stop seeing her regardless.”

“Ahem.” Flayn stood to the left, coughing into her hand for attention. Ferdinand nearly fainted on the spot but held himself together. Barely. Seteth looked abashed as he stepped back. “Excuse me, brother, but I believe I can decide for myself who I will or will not be seeing.” 

“Flayn, I am merely looking out for you, as a concerned—”

“Perhaps that is what you think you are doing!” Her cheeks puffed in anger. “But you are scaring my friends away from me, friends who mean a great deal to me.”

For a moment, he opened his mouth to argue again, but then he shrank back, shading his eyes, as if coming out of a trance. “No, you are… quite right, I am sorry. I just don’t want you to get hurt, if this relationship should end, the way most relationships do.”

Flayn placed a hand, soft and reassuring, on Seteth’s arm. “Perhaps that will be the case, and we will eventually part ways. But until then, he makes me very happy, so I will not hurry that end along.”

Seteth wiped at his eyes. After a time, he coughed into his hand, then tugged his robes back into position. “It seems I owe you an apology as well, Ferdinand. I believe I may have misjudged you.” 

Ferdinand blinked up at him, slowly unpeeling himself from the wall. It took a few tries for his spine to align properly. “I… accept your apology. But, uh, please, do not interrogate me again, I do not think my heart could take it.”

Seteth coughed again. “Right, yes. I will attempt to refrain from doing so.” A bird called in the distance. “I believe I have urgent business to attend to.” He excused himself, still seeming slightly red in the face. 

For a moment, Ferdinand busied himself with brushing some dust off his outfit. Then, something Flayn said caught up with his head, and he stammered, struck by it. “Do I… I really make you happy?”

Flayn grinned. “Yes, you do, Ferdinand.” She wound her arms around him, holding him quite tightly. She stood on her tiptoes, ethereal hair caught in the sunlight, and pressed a kiss to his lips. 

Ferdinand held her in his arms and thought that he would very much like to get used to this.


End file.
